سَواءٌ عَلَيهِم أَستَغفَرتَ لَهُم أَم لَم تَستَغفِر لَهُم لَن يَغفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُم ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لا يَهدِي القَومَ الفاسِقينَ

It is the same for them whether you plead for forgiveness for them, or do not plead for forgiveness for them: Allah will never forgive them. Indeed Allah does not guide the transgressing lot.

EXEGESIS

Fāsiqīn (sing. fāsiq) is a plural, active participle, deriving from the root fisq. The Arabs employed the word fisq in relation to the outgrowth of the date from its skin.^{‎[1]Lisan, under f-s-q.} However, lexically it denotes any kind of crossing of limits, be they natural limits, rational limits, or religious ones.^{‎[2]Tahqiq, under f-s-q.}

EXPOSITION

The consequence of the hypocrites not coming to the Holy Prophet and admitting their mistake was that even if he were to ask forgiveness on their behalf, there was still no room for them to be forgiven due to their persistence in hypocrisy and disbelief;^{‎[3]Shawkani, 5/276.} for God does not forgive and guide a people who knowingly go against His commandments and confront His Messenger. Divine pardon in such a case would imply directing them to attain eternal felicity at a time when they are outside the domain of divine servitude, and this is not possible: Indeed Allah does not guide the transgressing lot.^{‎[4]Mizan, 19/282.}

Put differently, the prayer of the Prophet on their behalf is not the complete cause for their forgiveness, but rather it is an exigent cause (muqtaḍī) in the sense that his prayer can only be effective if the necessary grounds have been prepared by them. Sincerity in repentance, resolution to change their course back to the right path, and their willingness to surrender to the truth, are among the conditions necessary for the acceptance of his prayer.^{‎[5]Nemuneh, 24/160-161.} Thus, as long as the hypocrites stand outside the boundaries of divine servitude, they cannot attain God’s forgiveness.

Therefore, from a Quranic perspective, the acceptance of intercession is conditional to commitment to bring reform within oneself and to be on the right path; only then it is that the prayer of the Prophet and the chosen ones of God shall be of benefit.^{‎[6]Mudarrisi, 15/420.} However, the hypocrites are in such a state of defiance (kufr) that, as discussed in verse 3 of this surah, their hearts have been sealed by God, and as such they no longer retain the ability to see the truth and to repent for their lapses. This is why in 9:80 God says: even if you plead forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah shall never forgive them because they defied Allah and His Apostle.

Indeed Allah does not guide the transgressing lot: in light of 9:80, fisq here can thus be explained as such a deviation from the right path that has culminated in faithlessness.^{‎[7]Alusi, 14/308.} Hence, the guidance from God cannot encompass a people who have reached the pit of disbelief.

Guidance, in the Islamic tradition, is classified into legislative (tashrīʿī) and ontological (takwīnī). What is inferred from the verse under discussion is that besides legislative guidance, even existential guidance comes from God, as He guides the one He finds to be deserving of being guided aright.^{‎[8]Razi, 30/548.}  

Furthermore, there is a subtle allusion in the verse towards a universal reality – that divine guidance embraces only those of God’s creation who remain steadfast within the limits of His servitude (ʿubūdiyyah). And it is only those who enter into the circle of His servitude that qualify for divine forgiveness.  

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

According to some exegetes, this verse was revealed after 9:80. This is due to the fact that when the latter was revealed, the Holy Prophet said: ‘My Lord has given me a choice; I shall pray for them more than seventy times, perhaps my Lord will forgive them.’ It was thereafter that the verse under discussion was revealed and informed the Prophet that it is all the same whether he prays for them or not.^{‎[9]Tabari, 28/72; Razi, 30/548; Ibn Kathir, 4/166; Alusi, 14/307.}     

However, according to the Shia perspective, the above narration is a lone report that cannot be relied upon, as its purport suggests the Holy Prophet to have prayed for the disbelievers, whereas there is consensus among Shia scholars that such a thing is not permissible in Islamic law.^{‎[10]Nur, 2/248; Ibn Shahrāshūb, Mutashābih al-Qurʾān wa Mukhtalafuh, 2/150.} Nonetheless, there are also reports that what the Holy Prophet said after the revelation of 9:80 was: ‘Had I known that they would be forgiven if I were to pray for more than seventy times, I would have certainly done so.’^{‎[11]Thaalabi, 5/436.}  

The phrase Indeed Allah does not guide the transgressing lot has been considered by a number of exegetes to be the justification for them not being encompassed by divine pardon.^{‎[12]Mizan, 19/282; Alusi, 14/308; Kashif, 7/332; Nemuneh, 24/161.}

The contention between the Asharite and the Mutazilite positions in Islamic theology manifests itself in the interpretation of this phrase of the verse. Asharite exegetes maintain that guidance is in the hands of God; He guides to the right path whom He wishes, and deprives from guidance whom He wills.^{‎[13]Ibn Kathir, 3/140.} On the contrary, the Mutazilites do not deem it correct to ascribe to God the act of obstructing His creation from guidance, hence they interpret Allah does not guide to mean that God does not name them to be amongst those who have attained guidance (muhtadīn),^{‎[14]Razi, 30/548.} or He does not show His benevolence towards them, rather He subjects them to disgrace.^{‎[15]Zamakhshari, 2/270.}   

[1] Lisan, under f-s-q.
[2] Tahqiq, under f-s-q.
[3] Shawkani, 5/276.
[4] Mizan, 19/282.
[5] Nemuneh, 24/160-161.
[6] Mudarrisi, 15/420.
[7] Alusi, 14/308.
[8] Razi, 30/548.
[9] Tabari, 28/72; Razi, 30/548; Ibn Kathir, 4/166; Alusi, 14/307.
[10] Nur, 2/248; Ibn Shahrāshūb, Mutashābih al-Qurʾān wa Mukhtalafuh, 2/150.
[11] Thaalabi, 5/436.
[12] Mizan, 19/282; Alusi, 14/308; Kashif, 7/332; Nemuneh, 24/161.
[13] Ibn Kathir, 3/140.
[14] Razi, 30/548.
[15] Zamakhshari, 2/270.